"What happens in Vegas"... Will likely end up on this site. Sorry, Las Vegas Chamber.

Friday, April 5, 2013

A Memorable Visit to Reid's & Heller's Offices

Well, someone isn't backing down. On KNPR's "State of Nevada" this morning, Senator Harry Reid (D) reiterated his commitment to the comprehensive gun safety reform bill he is introducing into Congress. Even in the wake of Senator Dean Heller's (R) waffling on the matter, Reid is sticking to his bill.

We know gun violence is a serious problem here in Nevada. We've seen it first hand in many instances. Yet now, Congress has a chance to act. Will Congress act?

This is why the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Demand Action campaign, ProgressNow Nevada, OFA Nevada, and more local citizens paid a visit to Senator Harry Reid's (D) and Senator Dean Heller's (R) respective offices at the Lloyd George Federal Courthouse in Downtown Las Vegas. They wanted the Senators to know Nevadans demand action. Yet in arriving there, protesters encountered a surprising twist.

But before we get to that, let's hear from ProgressNow's Brian Fadie on why action is needed.

We also heard from ProgressNow's Teresa Crawford. She also works as a nurse, so she's seen first hand the damage of gun violence.

Also speaking at the PLAN/ProgressNow office before the march to Lloyd George was Esther Sass. She's very much experienced the pain of gun violence first hand. And she powerfully made the case for action.

The group then made the trek to Lloyd George. Then upon arrival, they found out... They wouldn't be allowed in. Everyone then had to move out.

A representative from Senator Reid's office soon came out. He thanked the crowd for coming. And he reiterated Senator Reid'a support for expanded background checks.

He was soon followed by representatives from Senator Heller's office.

And that's all I can show you because Senator Heller's staff refused to allow cameras (but somehow KTNV's video camera was allowed to keep rolling, so at least there was that). The staff took the binder full of supporters of gun safety reform, but refused to state Senator Heller's position on gun safety. Again, they did not even want any recorded evidence of this occurring! Talk about a "profile in courage". (/snark)

Senator Heller is more than willing to pin all the blame on Hollywood for gun violence, yet Heller refuses to take any personal responsibility to fix the holes in current federal law. Again, 86% of Nevadans and about 90% of Americans support expanded background checks. So why won't Senator Heller commit to voting for that?

Surely, he doesn't agree with Sharron Angle and her "Second Amendment Remedies"? Surely, he thinks dangerous criminals should not have easy access to dangerous ammunition? So what's he afraid of?